(The Center Square) – The city of Tucson completed a deal with Pima County to have the county run a former Knights Inn hotel as a shelter for homeless people.
The county will pay the city a monthly fee of $39,922.92 to use the property. The city will make repairs and pay for utilities and provide two overnight security guards.
The city of Tucson and county used American Rescue Plan Act money to pay for a portion of buying and rehabilitating the Knights Inn property, according to city documents presented at its Aug. 22 city council meeting.
The long-term plans for the property could include it being converted into affordable rental housing for low-income families or to continue to use it as a homeless shelter, according to city documents.
Knights Inn is one of three former hotels the city has purchased and converted to temporary shelters and affordable housing.
Mayor Regina Romero said during the Aug. 22 meeting the city should be “putting a number behind” the financial resources the city and county have dedicated to the issues of homelessness and affordable housing.
“It is a big effort,” Romero said. “I would love to be able to see what the numbers are because I think that a lot of people don’t know what the county does, what the city does. They just want results. … We should be telling the story of all of the services that we are providing but also telling the story of how much we are investing in trying to solve this issue.”
The Center Square reported Aug. 23 the Arizona Department of Housing stated they wouldn’t be involved in a plan to house homeless people from a large encampment and illegal foreign nationals in Scottsdale hotel rooms.
The state backed off participating after state Rep. Matt Gress, R-Phoenix, questioned if the deal between the state and Scottsdale was legal.
Gress said many Scottsdale residents were opposed to their tax dollars being used to house homeless people from other cities and foreign nationals that he said should have been deported under Title 42.
